DPF light on every 2 weeks

[Nathan Grimes]

Dont listen to these that are saying you don’t use it enough that’s why it’s blocked as thats got nothing to do with it, these are probably the guys that drive petrols.
It’s more down to how you drive it and not how far you drive it. If you look in the handbook it tells you that if the dpf light comes on then you have to drive for as long as possible above 2000 rpm until the light goes off. If you go by that theory most of the time when the dpf light isn’t on then you will stop it from coming on as the higher rpm burns the soot off. However if you’re constantly doing 30 or 40mph in 5th or 6th gear then the dpf is going to have more chance to block up so then it’s your fault.
Having said that if nothing is faulty then the car should regenerate at some point on its own if the engine is running for long enough, for instance maybe on your weekend runs.
I have a 2010 170 tdi and do 5000 miles a year at most and my dpf light has never come on.
It sounds to me like something is faulty though if vcds says it has 0 ash as that’s pretty much impossible if the light is coming on and your car has over 100000 miles.
You don’t want to get the dpf cleaned until the fault has been fixed or until it’s been proven that nothing is at fault and it’s because of your driving style otherwise it will just fill up again.
Having the glow plugs checked is a good starting point as cars don’t usually regenerate with faulty glow plugs but you would have had an emissions light on the dash anyway if a glow plug was faulty.
There are lots of other things too that can affect it such as dpf pressure sensors, split hoses/pipes, too much oil or wrong oil so you need a garage that can check all these things before you get the dpf cleaned, cleaning the dpf should be the last thing you do.

I've just had it in with a Diesel specialist garage and they've run tests on the sensors and plugged it in to VAGCOM. No evidence of split hoses/pipes and everything looks ok.
The ash level is showing as 0.00 and he reckons a previous owner has manually reset that because the DPF looks to be the original so like you say, it can't be at 0.00.
He has recommended the next step is to fully clean the DPF of Soot/Ash so I've booked that in for Friday. Fingers crossed it is just full of ash and needs a good clean!
It's not ideal because I don't know for sure that it's ash causing the problem but it seems the most likely contender given the strange 0 reading in vcds.

 

[Daveyonthemove]

Dont listen to these that are saying you don’t use it enough that’s why it’s blocked as thats got nothing to do with it, these are probably the guys that drive petrols.

I do drive a petrol, but it's the first Petrol I've owned in 20 years of motoring, and I've had many diesels with various forms of DPF's fitted so I have a good idea of how to ensure they operate properly, and short journeys and low mileage isn't good for them. This is a Fact.
To emphasise this point, the AA state the following:
Active regeneration will be initiated every 300 miles or so depending on how you use your car and will take 5 to 10 minutes to complete. But it’s a problem if your journey’s too short and the regeneration doesn’t finish.
https://www.theaa.com/driving-advic...269&utm_source=yieldkit&utm_medium=affiliates

So if his drive to work is 5 minutes each way (walking distance in reality) and the car being a diesel isn't up to temp properly (most petrols wouldn't be either) then it's not getting hot enough to start a regen cycle, and if by some chance it did start the cycle the engine is turned off long before it's actually completed, hence why diesels are better for high mileage users because they get opportunities to regen fully, and they start to make sense with economy.

For the short distance this car is being used for, it will forever clog the DPF and cause more problems than it should. This in turn will require trips to garages to force a regen, or long drives with the revs pushed to around 2500rpm and reducing any economical benefit the diesel engine has.
In all honesty, he's got the wrong engine/wrong car.

 

[aqibi2000]

I've just had it in with a Diesel specialist garage and they've run tests on the sensors and plugged it in to VAGCOM. No evidence of split hoses/pipes and everything looks ok.
The ash level is showing as 0.00 and he reckons a previous owner has manually reset that because the DPF looks to be the original so like you say, it can't be at 0.00.
He has recommended the next step is to fully clean the DPF of Soot/Ash so I've booked that in for Friday. Fingers crossed it is just full of ash and needs a good clean!
It's not ideal because I don't know for sure that it's ash causing the problem but it seems the most likely contender given the strange 0 reading in vcds.

Looking for a DTC for the G450 isn’t the same as testing the sensor voltage output under driving load.

It takes 50 miles of driving for the DTC to be flagged as active, so there are no false positives.

Good luck

 

[Daniel James]

Hard descision, it also was hard for mee since it was an S-Line A3 with a color you don't see much around.
The car would be less worth everyday I waited so just got a 1.4TFSI instead.

The TFSI engines don't have a great reputation, so I was always a bit shivery about them. But the 1.4 TFSI treats me well and doesn't use any extra oil .

that would be spot on for me ... but finding a TFSI engine'd Black edition just proved to hard for me at the time. I think they only do the 1.8 TFSI & S3 in the black editons

 

[henkkeumus]

that would be spot on for me ... but finding a TFSI engine'd Black edition just proved to hard for me at the time. I think they only do the 1.8 TFSI & S3 in the black editons

Not sure what you mean with Blacked edition?

I own a 1.4TFSI all black, S-line.

 

[Daniel James]

Not sure what you mean with Blacked edition?

I own a 1.4TFSI all black, S-line.

Black edition is trim basically, black grill, fogs, headlining etc flat bottom steering wheel.

 

[henkkeumus]

Black edition is trim basically, black grill, fogs, headlining etc flat bottom steering wheel.

I think you mean sline then? I never heard of a blacked edition to be fair..

Verstuurd vanaf mijn ONEPLUS A5010 met Tapatalk

 

[ab1702]

I think you mean sline then? I never heard of a blacked edition to be fair..

Verstuurd vanaf mijn ONEPLUS A5010 met Tapatalk

No he means what he is saying.
Here in the uk there is an S Line and then an S Line Black Edition

 

[henkkeumus]

No he means what he is saying.
Here in the uk there is an S Line and then an S Line Black Edition

I'm curious now, can you show me some pics?

Google doesn't show me anything but S-line.

 

[Daniel James]

I'm curious now, can you show me some pics?

Google doesn't show me anything but S-line.

hold that ill see what I can get in the bad weather ....

 

[Daniel James]

th

No he means what he is saying.
Here in the uk there is an S Line and then an S Line Black Edition

thanks mate

I'm curious now, can you show me some pics?

Google doesn't show me anything but S-line.

Hi mate sorry about the poor quality, but I think you get the idea.

Black edition =
Black headlining
DLR's
Black grill
Flat bottom steering wheel
Piano black interior trims
9/10 Rotor alloys
among other things I've probably missed

 

[henkkeumus]

th

thanks mate


Hi mate sorry about the poor quality, but I think you get the idea.

Black edition =
Black headlining
DLR's
Black grill
Flat bottom steering wheel
Piano black interior trims
9/10 Rotor alloys
among other things I've probably missed

View attachment 198004

Hey mate,

Hate to break it to you but thats litteraly just S-Line interior, maybe you guys call it "blacked edition" but I can reassure you that it's called "S-line". It's a "Speed-line" option package. Do a Google search or Ebay and search for "A3 8P Sline" and you'll see it covers like 90% of what you just told me. Some things are just buyer dependent if that makes sense. If the first owner of the A3 chose chrome trims instead of piano black it doesn't make it another "edition" if you get what I mean. The interior (seats, a/b/c trims and roof interior) stay the same though. You prob. got S-Line stamped in your seats aswell, right?

I did a whole build over from my standard A3 to S-Line...

Black headlining = Not sure what you mean with headlining?
DRL's = Day Running Light, thats pretty common from MJ2008+
Black grill = Every MJ08+ has a black grille, if you mean the honey comb, it's S3 only.
Flat bottom steering wheel = S-Line (you even have the emblem IN the wheel)
Piano black interior trims = Thats an option you can choose when you order your car, I have chrome trims.
9/10 Rotor alloys = If you google rotor rims, you'll see it's an S-line option.
among other things I've probably missed


This are some photo's of my makeover..

From normal:

To S-line (black):

 

[Daveyonthemove]

If you click on this link it lists all the different specs on this platform (I selected S3 as an example) and Black Edition is most certainly an Audi factory spec.
https://www.parkers.co.uk/audi/a3/s3-2006/specs/

More info here:
https://www.autoexpress.co.uk/audi/a4/34363/audi-launches-a4-and-a5-black-editions

 

[ab1702]

There definately is S Line and S Line black edition however there aren’t many differences between the two.
On a facelift model the only differences are that a black edition will have a black grille, black inserts in the trim inside and a flat bottom steering wheel.
Both S Line and S Line Black Edition have black headlining and both can DRL lights but I believe these are standard on a S Line black edition and an optional extra on the S Line.

 

[henkkeumus]

If you click on this link it lists all the different specs on this platform (I selected S3 as an example) and Black Edition is most certainly an Audi factory spec.
https://www.parkers.co.uk/audi/a3/s3-2006/specs/

More info here:
https://www.autoexpress.co.uk/audi/a4/34363/audi-launches-a4-and-a5-black-editions

Well, you learn something new everyday, didn't knew about this one..

Now im kind of curious what he means with "black" grille then. I dont know any other the the standard and honeycomb.

Verstuurd vanaf mijn ONEPLUS A5010 met Tapatalk

 

[KevinA6]

I've just had it in with a Diesel specialist garage and they've run tests on the sensors and plugged it in to VAGCOM. No evidence of split hoses/pipes and everything looks ok.
The ash level is showing as 0.00 and he reckons a previous owner has manually reset that because the DPF looks to be the original so like you say, it can't be at 0.00.
He has recommended the next step is to fully clean the DPF of Soot/Ash so I've booked that in for Friday. Fingers crossed it is just full of ash and needs a good clean!
It's not ideal because I don't know for sure that it's ash causing the problem but it seems the most likely contender given the strange 0 reading in vcds.

Hi Nathan,

Did you every get to the bottom of your DPF issue?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[flakronramadani]

hello everyone. i have Audi A3 8PA 140hp 2012 230000km. i have a question .
i drive my car 1 hour per day 10-15km distance 30/40/kmph.
my car is activated for regeneration every 7 hours of work. it helds 1000 rpm and i drive on a highway 10 or 15 min exhaling white smoke back, me 2000rpm and it stabilizes with 800rpm. do you find it a bit coomon every 7 hours or 7 days ?

 

[aqibi2000]

hello everyone. i have Audi A3 8PA 140hp 2012 230000km. i have a question .
i drive my car 1 hour per day 10-15km distance 30/40/kmph.
my car is activated for regeneration every 7 hours of work. it helds 1000 rpm and i drive on a highway 10 or 15 min exhaling white smoke back, me 2000rpm and it stabilizes with 800rpm. do you find it a bit coomon every 7 hours or 7 days ?

Get Vcds and check your soot level in the dpf. The G450 sensor eventually fails typically after 3 years so maybe yours is playing up…. By the way do not buy new from eBay only used on eBay or Genuine from dealer.
Something for you to investigate further

 

[flakronramadani]

Get Vcds and check your soot level in the dpf. The G450 sensor eventually fails typically after 3 years so maybe yours is playing up…. By the way do not buy new from eBay only used on eBay or Genuine from dealer.
Something for you to investigate further

these are 3 pictures. 1 before regeneration, 2 after registration, I did reset and adaptation and photo 3 particular

 

[Jacobwatersx]

The car should conduct "activated regens" long before the warning light comes on. My car is at 100,000+ and I've never had the warning light come on and I do around 7,000 miles pa mixed driving. DPFs eventually get clogged with residual ash which cannot be removed by additives or other conventional treatments designed to clear carbon. Personally, I would change the oil and get it to the correct level (mine holds about 4.25 litres) and get the sensors checked which monitor and activate a regen. Is it possible that a previous owner has tampered with the "mapping" to map out the EGR whilst leaving the DPF in situ? This would have the impact of producing a lot of carbon for the DPF to deal with.

Hello, I’m having a Similar issue, I had an egr disable with a stage 1 3 weeks ago and now have a clogged dpf fault. I spoke to the mapper and he said egr delete won’t effect the dpf and he’s done it on 100s of engines. Would it be sensible to had them egr put back on the map? Although he wants £180 to do it. Any help much appreciated

 

[audia6uk]

Hello, I’m having a Similar issue, I had an egr disable with a stage 1 3 weeks ago and now have a clogged dpf fault. I spoke to the mapper and he said egr delete won’t effect the dpf and he’s done it on 100s of engines. Would it be sensible to had them egr put back on the map? Although he wants £180 to do it. Any help much appreciated

Hi,

Can you PM where you got it done? I am having the same issue after an EGR Disable a few weeks ago.

 

[Jacobwatersx]

Hi,

Can you PM where you got it done? I am having the same issue after an EGR Disable a few weeks ago.

i can’t see any option to PM mate but it was done in Bristol, I managed to clear my dpf fault by taking it on the motorway and using some cleaner, but if it comes back again I know I’ve got an issue. And as your in the same boat I feel pretty certain it’s linked with having the car mapped / Egr deleted

 

[audia6uk]

i can’t see any option to PM mate but it was done in Bristol, I managed to clear my dpf fault by taking it on the motorway and using some cleaner, but if it comes back again I know I’ve got an issue. And as your in the same boat I feel pretty certain it’s linked with having the car mapped / Egr deleted

Ah thanks, I did try the motorway on Monday but it's still on. Which cleaner did you use? I have seen Halfords do Redex so might try some of that and go down the motorway.

I keep reading that with EGR deletes that regens wont work but like you said, the guy who did mine said he's done 100's with no issue.

 

[Jacobwatersx]

Ah thanks, I did try the motorway on Monday but it's still on. Which cleaner did you use? I have seen Halfords do Redex so might try some of that and go down the motorway.

I keep reading that with EGR deletes that regens wont work but like you said, the guy who did mine said he's done 100's with no issue.

That’s exactly what my guy said to me, but I’ve read that it can cause dpf issues which it seems to in my case. Was yours Bristol or no?

 

[audia6uk]

That’s exactly what my guy said to me, but I’ve read that it can cause dpf issues which it seems to in my case. Was yours Bristol or no?

No it wasn't so not the same place.

I will try it down the motorway with some redex once rush hour is over.

 

[audia6uk]

That’s exactly what my guy said to me, but I’ve read that it can cause dpf issues which it seems to in my case. Was yours Bristol or no?

Was yours in limp mode or running normally just with the light on?